Gasoline pump



Oct. 4, 1932.

C. J. -WHITACRE GASOLINE PUMP Filed March 8. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 1ATTORNEY 0i2. 4, 1932. J, wan- 1,881,255

GASOLI'NE PUMP Filed March 8. 1927 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 5 EVYIIIM ATTORNEYOct. 4, 1932. c. J. WHITACRE 1,831,255

' GASOLINE PUMP Filed March 8. 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR CLARE/V65I WH/T/JCRE BY ,l 4, "n

ATTORNEY A of power when the pressure in the pump Patented Oct. 4, 1932UNITED STATES I PATENT OFFICE CLARENCE J. WHITACBE, 0F DETROIT,MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO CHESTER H. BRASELTON,

' OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

GASOIPINE PUMP Application, filed March 8', 1927. Serial No. 173,631.

This invention relates to liquid pumping devices, particularly of thetype designed to supply fuel to carburetors of automotive internalcombustion engines.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide an automaticallycontrolled liquid pumping device for pumping fuel directly rom the fuelsupply tank to the carburetor of an internal combustion engine withoutthe use of an auxiliary supply tank.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide' a liquid pumping devicewhich may be positively operated by the engine but which is renderedinoperative as. the pressure in the outlet connection of the pump risesabove a predetermined amount.

Another object of the invention is to provide a liquid supply pump forautomotive internal'combustion engines which will antomaticallydisconnect itself from the source been illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a preferred embodiment of the pump;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional side ele-' vation'of the pump shown inFig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view of the pump taken on the line 33 of Fig.1;

Fig. 4 is a sectional plan view taken on the line 44 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a sectional plan view taken on the line 5--,5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation taken on the line 66 of Fig. 2;

-Fig. 7 is a sectional side elevation of an- I other embodiment of theinvention;

. Fig. 8 is a sectional end view of the embodiment shown in Fig. 7 takenon the line 8-8. of Fig. 7 y

Fig. '9 is a sectional plan view of the outlet and inlet connections ofthe pump taken on theline 9-9 of Fig. 8; and

Fig. 10 is av modification of the bellows shown in Fig. 7.

Broadly the invention comprises a pump having relatively movable partsand valve outlet and inlet connections thereto.

inlet connection to the pump may be connected directly to the supplyfuel tank of the automobile and the "outlet connection may be connecteddirectly to the carburetor of the engine. A- means is provided to causethe pump to operate from an intermittently moving part of the engine.The pump is designed to supply more fuel than is required under maximumconsumption of the engine and as the pressure is built up in the outletpipe of the pump due to the pump supplying an excess The automaticallyseparated and the pump is disconnected from the operating meanswhereupon fuel ceases to flow through the pump until such time as thepressure in the outlet connection thereof is lowered.

7 Referring now more specifically to the drawings, the pump as shown inFig. 1 is attached to the crank case 10 ofan internal combustion enginehaving a cam shaft 11 upon which is mounted a series of cams one ofSeveral embodiments of the inventlon have a which 12 is shown asoperating the valve stem 13 and also the lever arm 14 of the pump. Forconvenience in attaching the pump to the crank case or for otherreasons, it may be desirable to space the lever arm between two of thecams and in this case a specially designed cam may be mounted on the camshaft in the proper location.

The pump comprises a cylindrical casing 15 having an open upper endwhich is flanged as at 16 and this end is closed by the cover plate 17which is attached to the flange 16 by the screws 18. The cover plate 17has a hollow portion 19 extending parallel thereto by which the pump maybe attached to the crank tight connection between the extended'portion19 and the crank case 10 of the engine, a

flange 22 is provided adjacent the hole 21 and letconnection casting andthe manner of his flange 22 is adapted to be inserted .in the hole inthe crank case. A suitable gasket 23 may be inserted between the plate20 and the side of the crank case and the whole may be secured to thecrank case by the stud bolts 24.

A hollow piston 25 is attached to the lower end of the casing, in amanner which will hereinafter be described, and a cylinder 26 is adaptedto reciprocate upon the piston 25.

Both the piston and the cylinder are prefer- 7 ably dome-shaped at theirupper ends, and the cylinder has a flange 27 extending around its lowerend upon which rests the lower end of a spring 28. The upper end of thespring 28 rests against the cover plate 17 and the spring therefornormally urges the cylinder toward its lowermost position with respectto the piston. A lug 29 may be provided on the upper end of the cylinderand to this lug may be pivoted a short connecting rod 30 which extendsup through a hole in the plate 17 into the hollow portion 19 and ispivoted to the lever arm 14 which is pivoted to theextended portion 19by means of the screw 32 which extends across and between the two sidesthereof. The piston 25' has a neck 33 extending upwardly at the topthereof and an opening 34 in this neck provides communication betweenthe pumping chamber and the inside of the piston. The outside of theneck 33 is turned slightly outwardly to prevent any lubricant which mayhappen to Work up the side ofthe piston from passing through the opening34. The extreme lower end 35 of the piston 25 is somewhat smaller indiameter than the upper part, and is threaded at the end to receivethenut 36. An outlet casting 37 is provided having a round flat hollowextended portion 38 connected thereto by means of a stem 39. The .roundportion 38 is drilled to receive the end 35 of the piston and whenslipped in place over the end of the piston is firmly secured thereto bythe nut 36 which thereby holds theoutlet casting 37 together with thepiston 25 firmly positioned with respect to the casing 15. The inside ofthe round portion 38is large enough to provide an annular chamber 38around the lower end of the piston and the interior 7 a substantiallyconstant flow of fuel.

of the piston communicates with this chamber through an opening 40. 'Aconduit 41 extends horizontallythrough the stem 39 and connects with avertical conduit 42 in the casting 37. At the top of this conduit 42 maybe secured the outlet valve 43. while the lower end thereofmay be closedby the plug 46. The casting 37 is preferably round and may be threadedto receive the'dome-shaped cap 44 which provides an air cushion toinsure Adiacent the conduit 42 is another opening in the casting 37 inmay be screwed.

which the outlet connection 45- By means of the construction of theoutattaching. to the casing of the pump, the air chamber and casing maybe swung around the pump casing in any desirable direction and securedthere by the nut 36. Thus the pump may be conveniently attached to acrankcase and the air chamber and outlet connection swung in thatdirection Where it will least interfere with other parts and accessoriesof the engine.

Fuel is admitted into the pump through the lower end of the piston 25 inthe following manner. The bore of the lower end 35 of the piston isthreaded adjacent the end thereof to receive a tubular member 47. Thismember has an upper portion 48 somewhat smaller in diameter than theinside bore of the piston so that an annular passage 48- is providedround the tubular member 48 to permit fuel to flow into the outletopening 40. The upper end of the tubular member 48 is provided with acheck. valve 49 ofany suitable design. The lower end of the tubularmember 47 may be threaded to receive the inlet pipe 50 from the fueltank and a polygonal shaped rib 47 may be provided thereon to facilitatescrewing the tubular member into place.

The operation of the device will now be describe duit 42, through thecheck valve 43 into the air chamber formed by the shell 44, and outthrough the outlet'connection 45 direct to the carburetor. The flow tothe carburetor may be regulated in the well known manner by the needlevalve and float arrangement inside the carburetor and when thecarburetor has become full of fuel, the needle valve is closed by thefloat whereupon no more fuel can enter the carburetor and pressure isgradually built up in the air chamber formed by the shell 44.

As this pressure increases, it is transmitted .to the interior of thepump chamber and gradually lifts the cylinder against the pressure ofthe spring 28. As the cylinder 26 lifts, the lever arm 14 is rockedabout its 1 pivot 32 and the end 14a is moved away from the cam'12 inthis-manner the stroke of the pump becomes less and lessas the pressureinside of the pump increases until there may come a time when the pumpceases to f nction entirely. However, during normal operation of the pumas the pump is designed to provide more uel than is necessary for theordinary consumption of the engine, the pressure will be maintainedwithin the pump and the end 14a of the lever 14 Will be struck veryslightly by the cam at each revolution thereof.

In order to provide a seal for the clearance between the cylinder andthe piston which will not onlyseal'the same against leakage of pressurebut. lubricate the parts so that little resistance is offered to theaction of the spring 28' and the cam 12, Iprefer to fill the casing 15about half full of a good heavy lubricating oil such as castor oil. Thusmight mix with the gasoline. In order to prevent the lubricating oilfrom splashing up through the opening in the plate 17 into the hollowmember 19,"I have found it preferable to provide a gasket 16a betweenthe flange 16 and the .cover plate 17 which is large enough to cover thewhole end of the casing 15 and have a hole just large enough to permitthe rod to pass easily therethrough.

I have also found that in the normal operation of the pump-there is atendency to produce some noise, due to the fact that the high part ofthecam 12 strikes against the end 14a of the lever arm 14, and toprevent this noise, I prefer to insert in the end 14a a strip of fibreor other soft-material 145 which may be held in place in a dovetail slotin the end of the leverarm. l

I It may also be desirable to provide a means tolubricate the pivot 32of the lever arm 14 as well as the pivot 31 at the end thereof. In orderto accom lish this, I contemplate providing a conduit 31a extendingthrough the lever arm 14 and in which maybe threaded a wick 32a. Thiswick terminates near the end of the lever where it comes in contact.

with the oil in the crank case 10 which oil is drawn by'capillaryattraction to the pivots 32 and 3 1.

In Figures 7 and 9 inclusive I have shown a modification of the pumpwherein the pump chamber is ormed by bellows 51 which may T33 be formedf a metallic tube having corru-.

gated walls. The bellows 51 may be attached to the inner end of a casing52 which has an open outer end adapted to be closed by the cover plate53. As will be apparent one side of the casing 52 near the open endthereof is extended to rovide a housin 55 for a lever arm 56 whic ispivoted to t e casing at 57 and contacts at its upper end with thebellows 51. The lower end of the lever 56 is pivoted at 58 to a push rod59 which extends through an opening in the cover plate 53. The coverplate 53 is built up around the push rod opening .to form a sleeve 60through which the push rod 59 extends and has lateral movement. A flange61 is provided at the end of the sleeve 60 by means of which the entirepump structure maybe attached to the side of the crank casing 10a in amanner similar to the attachment shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The inner endof the casing 52 may be built up to form a cylinder 62 to extend intothe bellows 51 and limit the size of the pumping chamber formed therein.The cylinder 62 may be drilled out to fit a plug 63 attached to theouter end of the bellows 51 and to provide a guide therefor. A conduit65 is provided which permits fluid to pass into the cavity formed in thecylinder 62 so that there will be no resistance to the movement of theplug 63 as the bellows 51 expands and contracts. It may be desirable toprovide a spring 66 inside the cavity in the cylinder 62 to urge thebe1lows51 toward its expanded position and in this case it may be alsofound desirable to provide a second spring 67 between the cover plate 53and the end of the lever arm 56 to urge the lever arm and bellowsinwardly and the push rod 59 outwardly against the cam 12a. I With someforms of bellows, however, the pump has been found to work just as well1 without the use of the springs above referred Inlet and outletconnections are provided for this modification of the invention in thefollowing manner; two dome-shaped tubular chambers 68 and 69 are castintegrally with the end of the casing 52 and the chamber 68 has anopening 70' communicating with the interior of the bellows 51. The lowerend of the chamber 68 is open and threaded to receive the inletconnection 71 in which may be mounted the inlet check valve 72, anysuitable valve being used for this purpose. A conduit 73 is providedconnecting the two chambers 68 and 69 at the lower end thereof and aplug 74 is adapted to fit in the opening at the bottom of the chamber 69this plug having a conduit 75 passing horizontally therethrough toconnect with the conduit 73 between the chamber 68 and 69. A verticalconduit 76 is provided in the plug 74 communicating with the conduit 75and upon the top of which the outlet valve 77 may be mounted. The plug74 is preferably attached to a flange 78 on the lower end of the chamber69 by two screws 79 and inasmuch as the conduit 75 extends completelythrough the plug 7 4, the plug may be inserted into the chamber 69 inany way as long as the screws 79 match up with the threaded holesprovided therefor.

- side of the chamber 69 and may be threaded to receive the outlet pipecarrying the gasoline to the carburetoi The operation of thismodification of the invention is substantially the same'as that alreadydescribed and need not be repeated here.

It may be found desirable to provide a bellows similar to thatdescribedin the patent to S.- F. Arbuckle, No. ,1,367,792. The construction ofthis bellows is indicated in Fig. 10 and the operation thereof would besimilar to that of the bellows 51 illustrated in Fig. 7.

It is evident that many modifications and changes may be made in theconstruction illustrated in the drawings and I do not therefore, desireto limit myself to the specific construction shown, but to interpret theinvention broadly within the scope of the appended claims. i Having thusdescribed my invention, what I claim is:

l. Ina pumping device, a casing; a cover plate attached to the open endof said casing and having a hollow portion extending beyond said casingat one. side thereof and by which the casing may be attached to the sideof an internal combustion engine; a pump within saidcasing comprising astationary part and a movable part; a lever pivoted within the hollowportion of said cover plate and having one end connected to said movablepart and the other end extending through an opening in the side of theengine; and a cam rotated by said engine and adjacent the end of saidlever, said pump and lever being so constructed'that the lever is movedaway from the cam as the pressure in the pump increases.

2. In a liquid pumping device, a tubular casing; a cover plate for saidcasing having a hollow extended portion by which the pump is adapted tobe attached to a support; a

pump within said casing comprising a stationary part and a movable part;a lever connected to said movable part and pivoted Within said hollowportion of said cover plate and having one end extending beyond. the

end of said hollow portion; an outlet connection for said pump; achamber adjacent said connection and communicating there wlth to form"an 2111' cush1on, sa1d chamber and connection being adjustable to extendin a-plurality of directions from said casing.

3. In a liquid pumping device, a casing; a cover plate for said casinghaving a hollow extended portion by which the device is adapted to beattached to a support; a pump within said casing comprising'a stationarypart and a movable part; a lever pivoted within the hollow portion ofsaid cover plate and having one end connected to said mov able part andthe other-end extending be= yond said hollow portion of said coverplate; means to conduct lubricant from a point adj acent the end ofsaid. lever to the pivot thereof; an outlet connection for said pumpcomprising a. pipe and an air chamber communicating therewith; and meansto adjust said outlet connection to extend in any one of a plurality ofdirections from said casing.

A. In a liquid pumping device, a casing; a piston within said casing andattached to one end thereof; a cylinder reciprocable upon said piston;means to urge said cylinder to ward its innermost position with respectto said piston; means. comprising a cushioned striking surface attachedto said cylinder; and means to repeatedly strike said striking surfaceto cause reciprocation of 'said cylinder, said first mentioned meanshaving a force directed upon the cylinder equal to the force exertedthereupon by the maximum desired pressure within the cylinder.

' 5. In a liquid pumping device, a casing; a hollow piston within saidcasing'and attached thereto; a cylinder cooperatmg with said piston toform a pumping action when said cylinder is reciprocated; inlet andoutlet conneotions communicating with the interior of said piston;spring means to urge'said cylinder toward one extreme position withrespect to said piston; mechanical means comprising a cam and strikingplate therefor to intermittently force said cylinder toward the otherextreme position, said. striking plate having a cushioned surface andmeans to seal the clearance space between the cooperating portions ofsaid cylinder and piston.

6. In a liquid pumping device, a cylindrical casing; a hollow pistonattached to the lower end of said casing; an inlet connectioncommunicating with the interior of said piston; an outletconnection-comprising an air chamber also communicating with theinterior of said piston; means to adjust said outlet connection' toextend in any one of a plurality of directions with respect to saidcasing; a cylinder adapted to reciprocate upon said piston; means toseal the space between the cooperating sides of the piston and cylinderwithout appreciably limiting the action of said cylinder; means exertinga force upon said cylinder equal to the maximum desired pressuretherewithin tending to urge said cylinder toward one extreme position ofits travel; and means mechanically operated to intermittently urge saidcylinder toward its other extreme position.

In testimony whereof, I afi'ix my signature.

CLARENCE J. WHITAGRE.

